The Role of Myth in Life

Chapters in this book

1. Frontmatter I
2. Contents VII
3. Acknowledgments IX
4. Introduction 1
5. The Forms of Folklore: Prose Narratives 5
6. Theories Concerning "Nature Myths" 30
7. The Problem of Defining Myth 41
8. On Defining Myths 53
9. Slippery Words: Myth 62
10. The Fall of Man 72
11. The Truth of Myth 98
12. Myth and Story 110
13. Cosmogonic Myth and "Sacred History" 137
14. An Ideological Dichotomy: Myths and Folk Beliefs Among the Shoshoni 152
15. The Creation Myths of the North American Indians 166
16. The Cultural-Historical Background of Myths on the Separation of Sky and Earth 182
17. The Role of Myth in Life 193
18. The Plasticity of Myth: Cases from Tikopia 207
19. The Flexibility of Myth 217
20. The Mythic 225
21. The Psychology of the Child Archetype 244
22. Joseph Campbell's Theory of Myth 256
23. Earth-Diver: Creation of the Mythopoeic Male 270
24. The Story of Asdiwal 295
25. The World Conception of Lajos Ami, Storyteller 315
26. The Myth of Washington 336
27. Suggestions for Further Reading in the Theory of Myth 343
28. Index 349